I am a technology evangelist, an investor, a commentator and a business adviser. I am the director of Diversity Limited, a business that is a vehicle for my work in investment, advice and consultancy. Diversity has holdings in manufacturing, property and technology companies and undertakes advisory work. For my complete disclosure statement, click here. I have a background across various industries, owning businesses in the manufacturing, property and technology sectors and make my day to day living consulting to technology vendors and customers. I cover the convergence of technology, mobile, ubiquity and agility, all enabled by the Cloud. My areas of interest extend to aviation technology, enterprise software, software integration, financial/accounting software, platforms and infrastructure as well as articulating technology simply for everyday users.

Oh, what a difference a few years can make. I remember almost fondly the days of MicrosoftMicrosoft posturing over the validity of cloud computing and now, if a report by BloombergBloomberg proves to be correct, the head of Microsoft’s cloud division, Satya Nadella, looks set to be its next CEO.

This really is an immense turnaround. Microsoft has truly delivered on its “all in” message re the cloud. We’ve seen compelling offerings for developers and enteprise IT by way of the Azure family of products and we’ve seen the emergence of a compelling proposition around office productivity. While some might argue that Microsoft Office is bloatware, Office 365 is a pretty good balance between the aims to deliver a fully functional desktop product while still allowing for collaboration and remote access.

Of course it’s not all plain sailing. Microsoft has struggled with a good response to the dual iOS/Android device and marketplace strength. Nadella will hopefully spend some time focusing on this area and try and work out a way to build Microsoft’s credibility there.

There is also the old problem of a dwindling PC user base and Microsoft’s reliance on Windows for its revenue stream. Nadella is, however, intimately aware of this situation and will no doubt focus strongly on thinking about what a “post-PC” world means for the company.

Nadella is a highly respected executive and if there’s one negative point about his appointment it’s that he’ll have less time to focus solely on the cloud portfolio. That said, having someone in the top seat with a deep understanding and belief in the cloud is going to be hugely positive for the company. Microsoft has progressed amazingly well over the past couple of years with the Azure product line up, Nadella as CEO will only accelerate that move.

According to the report, Microsoft is also considering having Bill Gates step down as chairman of the board, apparently to be replaces by current director John Thompson, former CEO of SymantecSymantec and ex IBMIBM.

All in all very positive news for Redmond, and a nice validation of the importance of the cloud. So much for a passing fad huh?

Post Your Comment

Post Your Reply

Forbes writers have the ability to call out member comments they find particularly interesting. Called-out comments are highlighted across the Forbes network. You'll be notified if your comment is called out.